14 APC Govs Storm Ekiti For Fayemi

Simon Ateba, Nkrumah Bankong-Obi & Gbenro Adesina/Ado Ekiti

A number of governors, Senators, House of Representatives members and leaders of the All Progressives Congress, APC, began arriving Ado, the capital of Nigeria’s southwestern state of Ekiti on Wednesday, as a show of support to Governor John Kayode Fayemi who is seeking re-election next month.

Ekiti governorship election is scheduled for 21 June and at least 14 governors were expected to present the APC flag to Fayemi on Wednesday at the Oluyemi Kayode Stadium in Ado Ekiti, and mandate him to defeat former governor Ayodele Fayose, the candidate of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP.

Fayose seems to be the most visible of the opposition candidates in the state as he goes around with a battalion of motorcycle and tricycle riders, singing and vowing to re-capture a seat he was forced to leave in 2006 following scandals.

Some governors and party leaders had arrived Ekiti at the time of filing this report and the city was calm, except for a few loud supporters of Fayose who were going round the streets of Ado on tricycles and motorcycles. Fayose himself led them in a luxury SUV.

Those who had already arrived were the National Leader of APC, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Gen Muhammadu Buhari (retd), Governor of Kano State Rabiu Kwankwaso, Kwara State Governor Abdul Fatah Ahmed and Tom Ikimi.

Others are governors Rauf Aregbesola, Rotimi Amaechi, former governors Segun Oni and Timipre Sylva, Bisi Akande, etc.

Earlier on Wednesday, the National Working Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party postponed by one week, the presidential flag-off of its governorship campaign slated for Thursday.

The party’s National Publicity Secretary, Olisa Metuh, said in a statement that the postponement is in honour of the victims of Tuesday’s explosions in Jos.